White Eagles bounce back with defeat of Spartans

The White Eagles were playing free-flowing, attacking football for the majority of the match, and while they played like League leaders, the newly-promoted Spartans kept Bonnyrigg on their toes.
Young David Vrankovic put in an outstanding performance for the White Eagles. The defender got on the scoresheet in the 12? minute with a header off a perfectly-placed Chris Tadrosse corner.
Simon Zahra levelled it for the Spartans on 25? minutes from the penalty spot. Louis Bozanic was brought down in the box and Zahra made sure Bonnyrigg keeper Ben McNamara had no chance when he smashed the ball in the right of the net.
That goal came against the run of play, but Bonnyrigg responded with pace and wave after wave of attack. Robbie Younis tapped the ball after Alex Canak crossed the ball straight into the box in the 30? minute before substitute Harris Gaitatzis sealed it for the White Eagles after a tense second-half when he smashed the ball into the top left corner from just inside the 18-yard box with seven minutes to go.
Bonnyrigg?s early dominance should have resulted in more goals, with Chris Tadrosse and Alex Canak creating plenty of chances for the home side.
David Vrankovic showed composure and confidence beyond his 18 years. His goal came after an almost identical earlier header was cleared off the line. The centre-half was solid in defence and has given his A-League prospects another boost.
The Spartans penalty came largely against the run of play and caught the crowd by surprise. It was the first time Blacktown had managed to take the ball into the Bonnyrigg penalty-area.
Chris Tadrosse ended his slalom run up the left flank with a perfect cross to Robbie Younis who was unmarked in the box, but the prolific striker sent the ball straight into the hands of Carlos Saliadarre in the 28? minute.
Younis headed the ball wide of the goal in the 44? after a lob from Tynan Diaz, leaving the White Eagles fans a little nervous that their dominant performance only gave them a one-goal lead.
The game was more balanced in the second period with the Spartans not keen to sit back and absorb waves of White Eagles attack.
Spartans midfielder Greg Kondek made a decent run up the right flank but sent the ball high, wide and handsome straight towards the press box in the 55? minute.
The Blacktown side were keen to take any chance they were presented with, including a long-range effort from Chris Gomez in the 65? minute that went well wide.
A Spartans corner on 73? minutes troubled the White Eagles but the ball was eventually sent out of the area. Spartans fullback Peter Hubbard took a knock and struggled to get back to defence.
Harris Gaitatzis sealed the match in the 83? minute when he smashed the ball straight into the top corner only inches inside the Spartans box. The substitute sent the boisterous home crowd into raptures, with many fans relieved that the League leaders had finally sealed victory.
The Spartans continued to attack with urgency right until the last second. While the victory for Bonnyrigg was convincing, Blacktown proved their no easy-beats and won?t take it lying down.
Their coach Ben de Haan was all smiles at the end of the match, despite the result:
?I?m proud of the way we performed. I give credit where it?s due, Bonnyrigg are one of the best.
?I was impressed with a few of our boys like Boyd, Zahra , Wells and Mitchell,? he said.
De Haan said he told his side to take the game to the White Eagles at the half-time break.
?I told the boys to get some confidence and play. We can?t be intimidated. We have to play, we?ll never move forward if we stay in our shell. We kept them nervous when it was at 2-1 and I?m proud of our efforts today.
?I?m impressed with how we?re going. It?s hard to keep the dressing room up after four losses on the trot but if you can compete with best sides you?ve got hope down the track.?
Bonnyrigg coach Brian Brown said he was extremely happy with the three points:
?We were dominating in the first 15? minutes but the penalty changed the tone of the game and gave them a little bit of impetus. I think they got back in the game and they made it hard for us and they worked their socks off,? Brown said.
?I was concerned we missed a few chance but Haris came on and scored a fantastic goal. ?He came in, beat the guy and drilled it right in the top corner.
?I thought our two stoppers were outstanding, their overall play was very good. Chris Tadrosse is the most consistent player in Australia, he never has a bad game he?s rock solid and he always plays a good game.?
Brian Brown is also expecting leading goal scorer to continue to improve this season, even though he has made a tremendous start to the campaign.
?I think Robbie Younis isn?t as fit as we want him. He got held up a bit pre-season but he?s getting there now and when we get him the way we want him he?ll be exceptional.?
Match Stats
Bonnyrigg White Eagles 3 (David Vrankovic 11?, Robert Younis 29?,Harris Gaitatzis 81?)
Blacktown Spartans 1 (Simon Zahra 25?)
Sunday May 12th, 2012
Bonnyrigg Sports Centre, Bonnyrigg
Bonnyrigg White Eagles: 1.Ben McNamara; 2.Alex Mansueto, 4.David Vrankovic, 5.Chris Tadrosse, 6.Nikola Zonjic (10.Jordan Simpson 85?) 7.Tynan Diaz (17.Jordan Crighton 45?), 8.Alex Canak, 9.Robbie Younis, 13.Nikola Stanojevic, 16.Adrian Ucchino, 21.Ken Chun (19.Harris Gaitatzis 70?)
Substitutes Not Used: 20.Andrew Bazi, 15.Luka Dukic,
Yellow Cards: Chris Tadrosse 45?
Red Cards: Nil
Blacktown Spartans: 1.Carlos Saliadarre; 2.Michael Khoury, 3.Nathan Millgate, 4.Daniel Wells, 5.Luke Boyd, 6.Chris Kondek (11.Andre Carle 85?), 7.Sean Mitchell, 15.Louis Bozanic (10.Chris Gomez 45?), 13.Jacob Ott (9.Chris Bedzo 65?), 17.Peter Hubbard, 19.Simon Zahra
Substitutes Not Used: 36.Tomislav Herceg, 40.Jesse Shewan
Yellow Cards: Peter Hubbard 45?
Red Cards: Nil
Player Ratings:
3 – David Vrankovic (BWE)
2 – Chris Tadrosse (BWE)
1 – Simon Zahra (BS)
 -By Alex Zerafa